When the media cognoscenti think about church & state, their focus typically revolves around the wall separating editorial decision-making and advertising sales. Journalistic purists at nearly every established news organization resist any influence an advertiser may try to exert over the news/feature hole.In fact, the church-state model is more than a metaphor at many media…… Continue reading Advertising Gone Awry
Category: journalism
Will AllThingsD Secede From News Corp?
ATD’s Mossberg & Swisher: (Photo: Denise Truscello/WireImage; PRNewsFoto/Digitas/AP Images)Yesterday, Wall Street Journal business editor Dennis Berman took to Twitter to trumpet the acquisition of respected Slate tech scribe Farhad Manjoo by the Wall Street Journal’s technology reporting team. Big tech news: We are pleased to welcome Slate’s great tech columnist @fmanjoo, who is joining the Wall…… Continue reading Will AllThingsD Secede From News Corp?
A VC Getting Its PR On
I read with considerable interest the news this week in which venture capital firm First Round Capital has started “a publishing platform to share secrets of startup success.” It follows the company’s announcement in October of a platform called hackPR, which is “a site where journalists can reach out to several companies at once around…… Continue reading A VC Getting Its PR On
New Media’s Movers & Shakers
Publicity Club of NY Panel on Contributed ContentLast week the Publicity Club of New York hosted a luncheon that featured a handful of editorial gatekeepers responsible for “contributed content” at their media organizations.Our panel included (l. to r.): Jessica Liebman, managing editor, Business Insider; Frank Wilkinson, Editorial Board member, Bloomberg View; Lance Gould, Executive Impact…… Continue reading New Media’s Movers & Shakers
The Journalist & the PR Pro: A Broken Marriage?
Last week my former Associated Press client Tori Ekstrand invited me to speak at the School of Journalism & Mass Communication at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. After a two–hour snow delay in New York, I finally made my way to the Freedom Forum Center on campus where Tori, now an assistant…… Continue reading The Journalist & the PR Pro: A Broken Marriage?
An Angry White House Press Corps
Over the weekend, I heard a segment on NPR’s “On the Media” in which co-host Bob Garfield explored the Obama Administration’s direct-to-constituent, earned and “owned” media strategies.The piece was filled with several mainstream journalists from the White House press pool complaining about their lack of access. The piece was aptly titled “Frustration in the White…… Continue reading An Angry White House Press Corps
Twinkle Twinkle Twitter Star
J. Paul Vance (AP Photo)The opening segment of CBS’s “60 Minutes” looked at the tragedy in Newtown and noted the fact that early reports, spread initially through social channels and eventually via mainstream media, were false. No, the killer’s mother didn’t teach at Sandy Hook elementary school, and no, it wasn’t Ryan Lanza, but his…… Continue reading Twinkle Twinkle Twitter Star
Zucker to CNN…Presumably
Jeff ZuckerIt is 3pm Wednesday, and the news of former NBCUni’s chief Jeff Zucker’s ascension to the leadership of CNN Worldwide has still not yet been confirmed by Time-Warner, nor Mr. Zucker himself. Even so, the Twitterstream was buzzing last night and today with hedged assertions that this news was manifest. Leading the charge was…… Continue reading Zucker to CNN…Presumably
Media Walls Crumble: Brands Benefit
Staples Center Star Turn (Photo: Harry How/Getty Images)Nowhere was the wall between editorial and ad sales as high nor as impenetrable than at mainstream news organizations. Who can forget the maelstrom that erupted in 1999 when one esteemed journalistic enterprise the Los Angeles Times blurred those lines by publishing a 168-page special Sunday magazine issue…… Continue reading Media Walls Crumble: Brands Benefit
Election Eve Round-Up
What a week…so many PR and media-related kerfuffles to ponder. Here’s a round-up:Frustrated Marathoners (Photo: AshleyKMayo via Gothamist)Q: Was it a good or bad PR move for Mayor Bloomberg to cancel the NYC Marathon?A: I think Mayor Mike’s instincts were correct. The comparison to 9/11 is apples to oranges. Too many peoples’ lives continue to…… Continue reading Election Eve Round-Up